on web marketing (re-revisited)
Full disclosure: I wrote this blog post over a decade ago, and as I revisit it (again) and offer it in this format, I am not surprised by how little has changed. For context, I wrote the original blog post in 2009 and have not edited that content much (only the names and locations have been changed to protect the innocent). This post was originally posted on the website of an old friend and colleague (which has since been taken down).
Open a new tab in your browser and search for “web marketing strategy.” What do you see?
I see nearly 45, just about 132, over 737 million search results, with the top entries promoting gimmicks, formulas, and sales pitches for commoditized versions of whatever they do.
Now, ask yourself, what does this have to do with my business?
There is the rub.
The most challenging part of navigating the interwebs is understanding how your business fits in. I offer here four simple things that you can do to figure out what you should be doing on the web. Through them, you can create a set of criteria to make an intelligent strategic decision about how to spend your web marketing budget.
#1 - define what web marketing means to you
The first thing I do when engaging any organization about web marketing is to find and define what "marketing" means to them, what marketing activities they have done in the past, and their personal experiences as a web user. Doing this sets a strong foundation for understanding, by all parties, what web marketing means—establishing a baseline to compare apples to apples when evaluating options and vendors.
#2 - measure what you are doing now
Seriously, how can you determine whether you are doing what you need to be doing on the web without some way to determine whether you are successful?
#3 - evaluate the competitive landscape
Look at what is being done in your field (or similar fields) and ask, "Is what is being done working?" if you answer that question, yes, resolve to do similar things–better. It is not a bad thing to use a competitor as a blueprint (if they are successful); you can reap the rewards of their hard work. If you answer the question no, become a pioneer and do things differently. Either way, the key to being strategic with web marketing is to create an opportunity to win. Too many websites and strategies are built without a chance of winning in their marketplace.
#4 - bite off only as much as you can chew
Only do as much as you are capable of handling. Content creation and management, SEO, and social marketing can all be challenging to execute, expensive, and time-consuming. Be realistic in both estimating your time and your budget. If you have the resources (or lack internal resources), outside providers can be great at filling the gaps, often at a good value.
Once you work through all four, create a checklist of what you consider negotiables and non-negotiables for any solution you evaluate. Once you have an objective criterion in which to evaluate vendor offerings, it is not such a big deal to wade through web service proposals to see which one is the best fit (and remember, price should also be considered as a checklist item – but do it with an eye for the total cost of ownership, not just initial fees).
The bottom line is to have a strategy for the web. Better yet, develop a general marketing strategy and an arm specifically for the web.
